I haven't;used a sewing machine in year's!!.I'm looking at the (Innov-is 1200).

Can't help you with the 1200, but you have got some good advice here. I have a 1500D and love it, though I wish I had gone for the 2500 or quatro. But money was a factor.
Check around with diffrent dealers. Sit down and try out the machine. What warranty do they offer, do they offer classes. I love my brother dealer. I can go in with a question on how to do something and they go right to a machine and help me. Not many would take time to do that. They also offered me full trade in value should I choose to upgrade in certain ime frame. Mine has been alomost a year and they said they would still honor that. What size hoop do you want to be able to do work in? A lot of designs cannot go in a 4x4, so you would be limited. Do they have a viritey of supplies. Stabalizer, thread, needles ect. Even though I order on line alot to save money, there are times when I need a certain color and get it at the dealers... at a discount.
AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST... How comfortable did you feel at the dealers? One dealership of a diffrent brand I went to acted like they didn't have the time of day for me. She was too busy talking to a friend on the phone to answer my questions or show me her machines. I later found out she does not service after the sale and did not have classes on the machine. A friend bought one and has had nothing but trouble.
SOOOOoooo, see whats out there and hope you find what you want.

Hi,
I have 2 Brothers. The SE-270D and I just got the Inovis 1220 a couple of months ago. My husband bought the SE0270D for my birthday a couple of years ago. It worked great but only does the 4x4. It is very similar to the se350. It broke recently and we went shopping and picked up the 1200. The saleslady told me the se-270 had alot of problems with the frame breaking, which is what happened to me. It had a lower quality frame. The 1200 is wonderful. I cant believe the difference between the 5x7 and the 4x4. My monograms look soooo much better now. I can also add little accect designs to the letters to make them more special. It also has tons of built in stitches and you can even design your own decorative stitches for regular sewing. It will even sew sideways if you have patches or something to sew on. You can even sew lettering without a hoop.. I absolutely love it. I use the PED basic software to transfer designs to the machine with a memory card but you can also use a USB port on the machine to transfer designs. I havent tried that yet though. I paid around $1800 for mine. I think they have some promotions right now but I'm not sure what. Also, I purchased a $6 thread stand with my machine so I can use larger cones of thread. It works great. Also very simple to thread. Hope this helps.

Welcome to cute! If you can afford it, buy a machine with at least a 5x7 hoop. There are lots of 4x4 designs, but that little extra "wiggle room" is always a plus. For example, if you decide to make towel toppers or free standing lace, some of the nicest designs require a 5x7 hoop. You will always regret not getting the larger hoop. I have used Brother machines and I have found them easy to use. Price...depends on the dealer. Some dealers don't participate in all of the company programs, but price their machines at a lower day to day price. I strongly suggest that you take your time, read all of the reviews you can find to make an informed choice and go to the various dealers, talk to the sales people and test drive the machines before you decide. And do this more than once, too :) Have fun shopping!

Not familiar with either machine, but go for something bigger than a 4x4 hoop. I have a Bernina but have to pass by many designs that I would LOVE to sew because I only have a 4x4 hoop. Pray the stock market does a rebound SOON - I really want another machine.

Welcome on Board - I've only been here a short while, too.

1 comment

by katydid 09 Jul 2009

I love my Bernina's. You must have had it a while with the 4x4 hoop. I use a185 to sew on an a 730 to embroider . Since the new model has come out, I'll bet you could upgrade and get larger hoops. Probably lots of trade-ins out there.

I have a Brother 2003D (they don't make it anymore, there are upgraded models). It comes with a lot of Disney designs which I love for my kids and future grand kids. It also has 4 hoop sizes which is great. Make sure you get more than a demonstration when you are looking. By that I mean actually sit and try doing things by yourself (with the salesperson nearby of course) to see how it feels and how easy it is. Also look for serging capabilities if you don't have a serger. Most machines have built in serge stitches and cutters but try them out because some of them are not that good. Have fun shopping!

Rose, Welcome 2 Cute Embroidery site. I hope you stay as this is one fantastic group of ladies/gents.
Have a look around, stay often and enjoy.
Unfortunatley I cannot help with your question, but be assured someone here will jump in to help you.
Check out all this site has available there are free designs and many lovely projects to view for inspiration. Lots of questions and answers...
Once again Welcome....Kerry in Australia

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Welcome to Cute rosemc! I have the Esante by Brother. It has several sizes of hoops but I use the 5 x 7 more. It depends on whether you think you will need the larger area to stitch. I'd shop around and look at some other models. The shop you are purchasing from should give you free lessons on the machine so you would be able to use what you purchase.

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with a embroidery machine i believe the se350 is only 4x4 right? well let me tell u i had got a brother that only done 4x4 and i was hooked and wish i had gotten a bigger area lik ei do now 6x10 shop around and make sure you get what u want i am also a brother fan and yes welcome to cute

Wow! This is your first post with us... Welcome to CUTE Rosemc. :-) I'm a Baby Lock/Brother fan, so I'm assuming anything from either manufacturer would be great. Others will come along and be able to answer your question. Again, welcome!

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